Tokyo Day 2

Feel free to skip the narrative and head straight for the video at the end of the post.

We spent our second morning in Tokyo checking out the chic Ginza district. Ginza apparently has a similar feel to NYC's Fifth Avenue. The area is quite posh, but dominated by many Western luxury brand stores. It's a nice area to stroll through and eye shop. Ginza also features one of Tokyo's largest toy stores, Hakuhinkan Toy Park. We also stopped by the famous Kimuraya-pan bakery, and it made me miss the Kimuraya back in Kaimuki (though I don't think they're affiliated).

After Ginza, we headed over to Roppongi Hills, which is marketed as the Beverly Hills of Tokyo. Roppongi features a humongous mall that makes my head spin just thinking about it. This is sort of the Tokyo I envisioned, lots of sleek skyscrapers and interesting buildings.

Side note: The streets of Tokyo are quite clean, especially in comparison to Seoul. At first, I thought this was because the city of Seoul does not provide public trash cans, but I didn't see very many public bins in Tokyo either. Could it be that the people of Tokyo actually hold on to their trash until they find an appropriate receptacle? That's craaaaaazy.

I digress. Anyway, after some sushi in Roppongi, we took the train to Odaiba to check in for an evening at the Ooedo-Onsen-Monogatari, a self-described "hot springs theme park." The onsen was probably one of the highlights of the trip. I'm still not too big on sharing public bath water, but you don't go to a hot springs to walk around in a yukata. I have to admit, the hot baths were pretty nice. Cyndi and I also paid to have the dead skin on our feet eaten by the so-called "doctor fish." It's not as gruesome as it sounds. It's actually quite ticklish. Actually, a little embarrassing as well. Most people had a handful of fish nibbling at their toes, while Cyndi and I were inundated with swarms of fish. It seemed as if half the pool was buffeting it up at our weary feet. I also really enjoyed walking around in the yukata. The skirt of the robe and the fear of pulling a Britney forces you to walk like a lady, or at least like a geisha. For an additional $15, you can stay overnight. Women may rest on some cushions in the ladies only relaxation room. If you're a light sleeper, this may not be your cup of tea because women often move in and out of the room. I, however, slept very comfortably.




Edit: Oops. My bad. That was Asahi TV (Roppongi Hills). Fuji TV is located in Odaiba.